On the Shelf: The Book Thief

THE BOOK THIEF | MARKUS ZUSAK | KNOPF | 2006

It’s just a small story really, about among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist-fighter, and quite a lot of thievery.... Narrated by Death, The Book Thief is the story of Liesel Meminger, a young foster girl living outside of Munich in Nazi Germany. Liesel scratches out a meagre existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist – books. Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor's wife's library, wherever they are to be found. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, Liesel learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids, as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement. This is an unforgettable story about the ability of books to feed the soul.

Wow.

This book took me so long to finish (I've been reading it for over a month), but not because I wasn't enjoying it. I think it was the opposite. I was trying so hard to really absorb everything in the book that I didn't want to rush through the story.

The narrative voice is incredibly unique and unlike anything else I've ever read. Although explained from the point of view of death, everything is beautiful - even the terrible - and it really questioned what  I thought of as good and bad experiences. I loved reading about the fragments of a life, not getting a full   narrative story. That's the way life is. We don't remember everything and the memories we do have aren't always the most important.

Having a narrator outside of the main character's frame of mind - outside of life itself - offers a new perspective. The story is heartbreaking and hopeful. Reading about how one girl finds solace in words was believable and inspiring.